Old Marrieds
by sinemoras09
Summary: The nature of their relationship. Kofuku/Daikoku. Spoilers for chapters 38-59


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Sometimes, Kofuku had sex with Daikoku.

She honestly didn't get what the big deal was. Sex with Daikoku wasn't like the love scenes she saw on TV, full of earnest longing or passion and angst. It was comfortable and familiar, like a hug or a kiss and a cuddle. Honestly she didn't get what was so scandalous about it. "That is because he is your shinki," Bishamon said.

"So?" Kofuku said. Bishamon looked at Kofuku as if in rebuke.

"You are his master. You gave him his name, he is beholden to you. Physical relations would only defile your bond."

"But it's not like I'm forcing him!" Kofuku said. "Usually he's the one to start things first, and-"

"Kofuku-dono!" Bishamon's ears were red.

"What? It's true!" Kofuku said.

"The heavens are talking." Bishamon looked at her, gently. "They are reconsidering your exile. I only thought to let you know as a fellow god and as a close friend."

"But I love my Daikoku!" Kofuku said.

"Just think about it," Bishamon said, and she stood politely by the door.

xXx

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Kofuku knew all about love. She read enough trashy magazines and watched enough reality TV to know. She knew love was caring about someone, and having someone care about you, and that there were hugs and happy feelings and feeling like you have somewhere you belong.

Daikoku loved her. He was big and warm and he got scared whenever she got hurt. And Kofuku loved him. They made each other happy, so why was that so wrong?

"Ne, Daikoku?"

"Hm?"

"You don't think this is defiling our bond, right?" Kofuku said.

They were snuggled up on the futon, Daikoku rearranging the comforters and slipping into a spooning position while Kofuku curled up against him. She'd been sleeping next to Daikoku for nearly a millennia, it hadn't occurred to her that this could be seen as something bad.

"Huh?" Daikoku said. "You want me to move over?"

"No," Kofuku said, and she snuggled against Daikoku's chest. He let his hand rest gently on her head.

"What's wrong?" Daikoku said. Kofuku pouted into his shirt.

"Bisha was being mean."

"What did she say?"

"She said a proper goddess wouldn't defile her shinki."

"Last time I checked, my lady wasn't a proper goddess," Daikoku said. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and rolled over.

"Noooo! Don't go to sleep!" Kofuku said, and she shook him. "Dummy Daikoku! Wake up!"

"Okay, okay! I'm awake!" Daikoku said, and he rolled onto his back, letting Kofuku splay on top of him. He looked up at her and frowned a little, picking off a piece of lint and frowning at her hair. "This is really bothering you, huh?" Daikoku said.

"It is! Because I love my Daikoku! I don't want you to think I'm using you!"

"Well I love my lady too. So don't worry about it," Daikoku said. Kofuku leaned on his chest, resting her elbows against his shoulders.

"Wanna do it?" Kofuku said. Daikoku snorted.

"My lady isn't much for romance," Daikoku said.

" _Pleeease_?" She looked at him with puppy eyes.

"Okay, fine," he said, and he rolled her over.

xXx

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Kofuku wasn't technically in exile. If Daikoku had to characterize it, it was more social ostracism than anything else. As the goddess of poverty, she had endured the disdain of the heavens for centuries. That she dared to get herself a shinki, despite their express prohibitions against it, didn't do much to remedy the situation.

It made Daikoku sad if he thought about it. Gods were born of wishes, but his lady was born because whenever things were bad, humans needed someone to blame. "The harvest is ruined and the land is fallow. The Binbougami cursed you!"

"My wife left me and I lost all my money. The Binbougami is to blame!"

"Tch," Daikoku said. Even now, a throng of businessmen were tossing back drinks and talking shit about his lady. ("Didn't you know? Yousuke lost another client. It's because he's got the Binbougami's luck!")

"It pisses me off," Daikoku said. Kofuku was hanging off his arm, being very careful not to touch anything or look anyone in the eye. She pretty much begged him to take her into town, giving him those sad, wide puppy eyes and sniffling that she just wanted him to take her on a date. "They lost their money because they're a bunch of fuckin' morons. You got nothing to do with it."

"It's okay, Daikoku! It just means I got more believers!"

"Tch." Daikoku tossed back a drink. His lady was wonderful. His lady was fucking perfection. Sure, she accidentally set a few fires and caused a few car crashes (minor injuries and no fatalities, Daikoku made sure of that), but that was in her nature, she couldn't help it. He watched as she leaned against one slender arm, sipping her drink and watching wistfully as the businessmen sing karaoke at the front of the room.

"The heavens are reconsidering our exile," Kofuku said.

"Fuck the heavens," Daikoku said.

"Eh?"

"You heard me," Daikoku said. "They're all a bunch of stuck-up assholes. They always got something to say."

"But everyone in the heavens is really nice!" Kofuku said.

Daikoku glowered. The last time they ventured up to the heavens, Takemikazuchi called Ebisu a spineless castaway and told Kofuku to remember that nobody wanted her, and while Ebisu just took the insult with a smile and a little shrug, Takemikazuchi's words made Kofuku start to cry, and it was all Daikoku could do to keep from tearing open a vent and bashing in the thunder god's stupid-ass face. Unfortunately, Takamagahara was nearly destroyed in the process, and it only reaffirmed their need for voluntary exile.

"There's nothing nice about it," Daikoku said. Kofuku slapped her hands on the table and pushed up on her arms.

"There is too!" Kofuku said. "There's lots of sunshine and smiling and lots of pretty flowers, and it'd be super neat to just go there and set things on fire!"

Daikoku smirked. "I like the sound of that better," Daikoku said.

xXx

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Sometimes, Kofuku flirted with the humans. Usually it would lead to a few weeks of hopeless dating, her victims losing their pride and their money to Kofuku's mischief.

It used to bother Daikoku, at least until he figured out why she went out of her way to flirt with them: as the Binbougami, his lady was unwanted. He knew it made her feel good, the feeling of humans actually wanting her around.

xXx

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"Ne, Daikoku?"

"Yeah?"

"How do you think Daigo is doing?"

Daikoku looked at her. Kofuku rarely mentioned their son - it made them both too sad. "He's probably okay," Daikoku said. Kofuku wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned against him.

"Did you know, Daikoku? It's his birthday, today. It's the day when I first named him."

"I know," Daikoku said. He stroked Kofuku's hair.

xXx

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Even though this was Ebisu's seventy-eighth reincarnation, Kofuku still couldn't get over how _cute_ Ebi-chan was. With his cute little stubby legs and his fat little baby cheeks, baby Ebisu was like a little walking doll.

"What have we got here!" Daikoku said, and he lifted Ebisu by the armpits and held him up in the air. "Oi, you're pretty big already! You're practically a grown-up, now!"

Ebisu giggled, delighted. Kofuku watched as Daikoku spun around Ebisu, playing and roughhousing with the boy the way he used to with Daigo. "Thank you for your hospitality, Daikoku-san," Ebi-chan said. Daikoku smiled.

Behind them, Kunimi and Iwami watched, quietly. The new and old leads were speaking quietly amongst themselves, and while Iwami had been technically released, he still remained in quiet exile, staying with Bishamon and occasionally giving guidance to Kunimi as he navigated his role as Ebisu's new lead. "I think that's nice," Kofuku said, and Kunimi and Iwami smiled, letting her sit beside them. "Ebi-chan is a nice boy. You both take good care of him."

"I will do my utmost to help the young master as best I can," Iwami said. In the background, Daikoku and Ebisu were racing; Ebisu laughed, beating him.

"You used to raise Ebisu whenever he was reincarnated, right?" Kofuku said. Iwami nodded gravely.

"Indeed. It was my charge to see to it that the young master kept on his current path."

"Did he change a lot?" Kofuku said. Iwami shook his head.

"His memories left him each time, but his personality always stayed the same," Iwami said. Kofuku looked back at Ebisu and Daikoku, quietly.

If she were human, if she and Daikoku were married and alive, she could give him all the babies and children he wanted. He would get to be a daddy, they could have a real family. But Kofuku wasn't human. She took in Daigo, hoping to live as a family, but all that did was hurt him. "I hope Daikoku raises me someday," Kofuku said. Iwami looked back at her, quietly.

"Forgive me, lady Kofuku. But that is something for which you should not wish."

Iwami looked at Kofuku, and Kofuku could see the milky whiteness of his eyes, the thin, gray hair and long creases of his face. "We rejoice when our master is reborn. But there is always the pain of losing the master that we had known. Your Daikoku loves you," Iwami said, and his milky eyes slid upwards, meeting hers.

"With all due respect, lady Kofuku. Your death would be more than he could bear."

xXx

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They were snuggled up on the futon again, Daikoku pressed up against her back and his arm slung heavily around her waist. From the sound of his breathing, Kofuku knew he was already asleep.

Sometimes, on nights like this, Kofuku sifted through Daikoku's human memories. They were a god's greatest secret, and even though in their daily life she and Daikoku were equals, the fact that Kofuku knew things about him that he didn't put them on uneven ground. _"He is your shinki,"_ Bishamon had said, and reminders of that made Kofuku sad.

"What's wrong?" Daikoku said. He spoke into her hair.

"I thought you were sleeping," Kofuku said.

"Can't sleep with you frowning like that," Daikoku said, even though he couldn't see her. That's how strong their connection was - he could tell what she was feeling without even looking at her. Kofuku shifted, rolling on her side to face him. "What is it?" Daikoku said again, and Kofuku started to cry.

"Hey, hey," Daikoku said, and Kofuku shook her head. Tears filled her eyes, but she smiled at him, sniffing.

"Sorry," Kofuku said, and she burrowed against his chest. "Watching you play with Ebisu made me kind of sad."

"It's not 'cause you miss the old Ebisu, is it?"

"No. I mean I do miss Ebi-chan, but..." Kofuku trailed off.

"Tch. I figured as much." Daikoku hefted her close, resting his chin against her head.

"I wish I could give you a baby," Kofuku said. She felt a hand rest on the top of her shoulder.

"Probably a good thing you can't. Any kid we'd have would be freaking demon spawn. You know that." Daikoku stroked her hair. "They'd probably be real cute, though," Daikoku said. "Hopefully they'd look like their mommy." He smiled; she didn't get stung.

"Ne, Daikoku?"

"Hm?"

"If I could be reincarnated..." Kofuku hesitated. "Would it be better? I mean, if I were re-born?"

"What? Like Ebisu?"

"Yeah."

Daikoku shifted her against his chest. "I don't want to think about losing my lady," Daikoku said.

"But-"

"You're my lady," Daikoku said. He shifted to look at her. "I don't want to lose you."

Kofuku nodded against his shirt. They didn't speak for a long time.

"Ne, Daikoku?"

"Yeah?"

"If I were human, would you- I mean, if you weren't my shinki and I weren't your master-"

"What? Would we be married? Yeah, we would. And you'd be pesterin' me about stupid stuff just like now."

His arms were strong. He felt warm and good and Kofuku felt safe nestled up against him. "How do you think we'd meet?" Kofuku asked. She was starting to feel sleepy. Daikoku considered.

"Hmm. Well you'd probably be up to some mischief. I'd probably be the butt of one of your pranks."

"Really?"

"Yeah. But then I'd get one look at ya and fall in love with you anyway."

Kofuku hugged him. "Even though I pranked you?"

"Even though you're a pain in my ass, yeah."

Kofuku squealed. She laughed and kissed him and pulled off his shirt.

Daikoku loved her. He was someone who actually wanted her around.

xXx

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The other gods didn't understand their relationship. It bothered Kofuku at first, but now she really didn't care.

They made love in the dark in the middle of the night, Kofuku's knees bumping against Daikoku's ribs and Daikoku's arms wrapped around Kofuku's back. They made love because they loved each other, and if that was something scandalous, she really didn't care.


End file.
